Mon Frere
by Sake Bottle Swing
Summary: My brother. As Yuki goes through a crisis, Ayame comforts him as best he can.


Brothers need some time to bond, and Ayame comforts Yuki as best he can through a crisis.

Disclaimer: I do not own Fruits Basket, blah blah blah….

The door to Yuki's room slammed shut with an air of frustration, sadness, and above all, confusion. Tohru tried to apologize, Shigure claimed ignorance, and even Kyo might have looked a little sorry, but that didn't erase the fact that Yuki saw Tohru and Kyo….ugh, he couldn't even think about it without feeling those pains again. Worst of all, his extremely irritating older brother was also downstairs, preparing tea. He flopped himself down on his bed and prepared for an afternoon and evening of feeling miserable.

Today had been going so well, too. Student council work had been rather light, his fellow members weren't as irritating as usual, and a few members of the "Prince Yuki fanclub" were ill and absent from school, so he enjoyed at least a few moments' peace. Yet the second he stepped into Shigure's house his day crash-landed and burned in an ugly pile of twisted memories. First there was Ayame, singing and twirling about like a geisha, with Shigure joining in his antics. Worse, after Ayame was bored with singing and twirling, he seated himself on the couch with Shigure…._on his lap_. As if that wasn't enough to make anyone go and crucify themselves on the spot, Kyo barged in all "fluffed up" (as Yuki put it, i.e. angry) and itching for a fight. When the Rat refused, the Cat proceeded to destroy the house, which the Dog and the Snake didn't notice for said Dog and Snake being too "preoccupied" to do anything about it.

That wasn't even the worst of it, though. The worst, the absolute worst was when he returned from the kitchen with some rice and natto as a snack and saw Kyo kissing Tohru. Oh, they thought they were being discreet by doing it behind the couch, but Yuki wasn't deaf to Tohru's little squeaks of happiness.

And so here he was, upstairs in his room feeling despondent when someone knocked on his door. He refused to answer, for there wasn't anyone right now except maybe Haru who could talk to him and possibly make him feel better. He rolled over onto his stomach and was about ready for a little bit of a cry when a voice called out, "Yuki? Yuki, it's me, I want to talk to you."

He sighed heavily. "Go away, Ayame, I don't want to talk to you."

"Yuki, please, I understand-"

"No, no you don't understand! You, who have always gotten everything that you wanted could not possibly understand! I don't want to talk to anyone, now go away!"

"Yuki, please, just let me in for five seconds, if I don't understand I can at least listen."

He sighed. There was no ridding himself of that bothersome snake. "Fine, come in, but don't even think about acting stupid."

Ayame, instead of making his usual dramatic entrance into the room, pushed the door aside quietly and stepped in. In his arms he carried a tray with two cups on it. "Here, I brought you some of my 'Feel-Better Tea'."

Yuki sat up and took the cup from the tray and peered inside at the green liquid. "It's just regular tea."

"It's not regular tea, it's made with love and I made it myself. Now, please tell me what's going on. All I heard was a brief account from Gure-san".

"You don't really need to know. It's fine. It's nothing, really. I'm fine, actually."

Ayame sighed in a non-theatrical manner and spoke. "Yuki, though I might not know you as well as I should, I at least know when something would bother you, and you walking in on the girl you love kissing your rival would make even the most cold-hearted people upset."

Yuki's anger flared. "Who are you to say I love Miss Honda? I am grateful that she cleans the house and for her friendship, that's all."

Ayame raised an eyebrow inquisitively. "Oh? Yet why is it that you dropped your rice and natto and stormed up here if your feelings were merely platonic? You love her, little brother, and believe me, I understand."

Yuki sighed and put his head in his hands. "Maybe I do love her. She just…she brightened my world. She's so happy and she smiles so much, she's made me forget about the curse, about my past, and about the inevitable future. I know that Haru's been there for me and has listened, but he has so many troubles of his own. It was such a relief to be with someone who didn't feel the same curse that I did and would help anybody, even those who hated her. I admired her…and I wanted to be more like her. And she made me feel better about myself in a way that all of these 'admirers' that I know can't." He exhaled deeply and shook his head. "Why am I telling you all of this? You'll just go and do some theatrical antics like you always do."

Ayame smiled. "I'm glad to know that you're being honest for once, Yuki, and that you have so much faith in me. Now let your older brother tell you a little story of his own that you might find interesting."

Yuki shook his head no at once. "No, no stories, I don't want to hear any of your asinine tales. Leave me alone."

Ayame laughed lightly. "Oh, but the asinine tale has already begun. I was your age not too long ago, and believe it or not we go through many of the same struggles. I was maybe a year or two older than you and I had met whom I thought to be the most beautiful girl in the world. Her hair was brilliant, her eyes shining bright with curiosity and the frivolity of youth. I nicknamed her 'Juliet', so dazzling was her beauty. She thought this was adorable, of course, and fell madly in love with me-or so I believed. You can imagine my shock and surprise when I discovered her and another boy I knew kissing passionately in a parking lot at the cinemas, where she was supposed to have met me for a date. I stared at her in shock and babbled incoherently while she hopped into his car and they drove off. He passed by me as he left and she leaned out the window and shouted, 'Better luck next time!'. She couldn't have done better if she'd ripped my heart out and cut it up for sushi. Looking back, I saw that she was a vain and foolish creature, but then I was devastated. I wouldn't speak to anyone for a week, but my two greatest friends-Shigure and Hatori, of course-helped me through it." He paused here to let the story sink in for Yuki. "I've moved on, and so will you. You might think that there will never be another girl like her in your life, and you know, that's true. But you will find someone even better, someone who can make you smile just as bright."

One tiny, crystal tear slid down Yuki's cheek, but it was not for Ayame's story, nor was it for himself. It was the fact that his older brother, for once in his life, had shown care for his younger sibling and not for himself. Ayame reached up and brushed the tear away with his thumb all while smiling with care at his younger brother. "I've no idea if I've helped in any way, but that is what I can say. Yuki, people love you, and not just for the princely side you show. It's all right to act like a fool every once in a while. No one who really cares for you will hate you for it."

Yuki turned and looked at his older brother. "I don't understand. Why did you do this? Why did you bring up this tea for me and tell me that story and listen to me? Why?" Ayame's eyes sparkled. "Because I wanted to help you. I've learned a bit from Tohru, too, and I learned that I need to make an effort to help this relationship. I can't keep going on as though my younger brother does not exist. Believe it or not, I want you to be an important person in my life. And without further ado, I want you to accept this. It's not much, but I felt you would appreciate this." He held out a package wrapped in tissue paper.

Yuki stared at the thing in his hands. "Is this some kind of a joke? Please don't tell me you embroidered anything on this, please."

"Just open it. You'll like it, I promise."

The rat sighed and tentatively tore the wrappings. Inside was a winter coat in a shade of deep violet that matched his hair, with the Mandarin-style collar that Yuki preferred.

"Please, try it on. I saved your measurements from a year ago, and I hope they haven't changed since then."

Yuki shrugged the coat onto his slender frame and slid his arms through the sleeves. The inside was lined with a soft faux fur in a matching shade of violet. It warmed him instantly as he snuggled into it. "It fits perfectly. It's so warm…how did you know I needed a new coat?"

"Because, the last time you came into my shop you were shivering and looked freezing cold. It's the least I could do, really."

The smile on Yuki's face was genuine. "Ayame, thank you. For everything: the tea, the coat, and for listening to me."

"Maybe now I can act like an older brother to you." Yuki rose from the bed, grabbed the tray with the two cups, and headed out into the hallway. "I'm going to have a little 'talk' with that cat and find out some information. It won't be easy, letting Miss Honda go, but I think I can manage." He turned to head downstairs, but not without a parting glance at his brother. Ayame winked at him before standing up and walking towards Shigure's room.

_More than keeping my long hair, more than saving my classmates from expulsion, now, more than ever, I feel like a hero._

Please review, even if you thought it sucked!


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